In the coming weeks, we will start releasing developer blogs that thoroughly explain the ins and outs of our major new features and improvements this year. We can’t wait to share more details about MLB 14 The Show’s feature set. Until then scroll down for a comprehensive summary of everything planned for this year’s game.

KEY FEATURES
•Next Generation Baseball Has Arrived – MLB 14 The Show makes its next-gen debut on the PS4 system, utilizing the system’s vast resources to deliver exceptionally detailed and fluid gameplay. With improvements to presentation, a wealth of added animations, and a dramatic increase in environment and player detail, we are setting out to create the best-looking and best-playing baseball sim ever created.

•The Evolution of Road to The Show continues (All platforms) – First among the major improvements is a completely revamped advancement system, complete with improved logic and the removal of advancement goals. Also being introduced is a new beginning to a player’s RTTS career with the Topps Amateur Showcase, a series of games against other draft prospects. Additionally, the training system, logic, screens and modes have all been revamped to provide users with a more engaging experience.
oOther changes include a new player-creation process, the reintroduction of the “broadcast” presentation perspective as an option, and a re-envisioned Catcher Mode, to name a few (PS3 & PS4 Only).

•Year-to-Year Saves (All platforms) – For the first time in franchise history, saves can be carried over from MLB 14 to future releases of The Show, meaning that gamers won't have to worry about starting their Franchise or Road to the Show seasons over in years to come.

•Player Lock (All platforms)– The new Player Lock feature (a.k.a RTTS anywhere) gives users the ability to lock-on to any single player and enter games using the Road to the Show gameplay mechanic, allowing for faster games and more focused on-field action.

•Quick Counts (All platforms) – Users will now be able to play a full nine-inning game in less than 30 minutes, half the time it takes in previous iterations of The Show. Despite the shortened game durations, realistic stats will not be compromised.

•Community Challenges (PS3 & PS4) – Players will be able to freely toy and tinker with game situations and scenarios on the fly, whether that’s the inning, score, who’s on base, or where the ball is hit. These custom situations can be bundled with a creative set of goals and put forth as a challenge to the community, whether it’s to relive the past, change history, or dream of new possibilities.

•Universal Profile (PS3 & PS4) – A new tendency-tracking system monitors and records gamers’ unique playing styles. Those patterns are stored in the Universal Profile, which can be viewed by anyone looking to get a quick scouting report on the player. The Universal Profile can also be subbed in in place of a CPU opponent in Diamond Dynasty and Online Franchise, making for more realistic head-to-head matchups when schedules prevent synchronous play.

•Online Franchise (PS3 & PS4) – Finally, Franchise mode can be shared with friends online, with most of the features from the offline version making the transition, including Scouting, the Amateur Draft, Free Agency and CPU Trades. The mode will remain highly customizable as scheduling, divisions, postseason spots and more are all commissioner options.

•Stubs (All platforms) – Playing games in MLB 14 The Show rewards players with Stubs. Stubs can be used to purchase additional in-game content – like Road to the Show training points – or used in our new mode, Community Challenges. Stubs can be earned in any mode, and they are not required to progress through a mode. You can still purchase additional in-game content through the PlayStation Store.

•Diamond Dynasty Extra Innings (PS3 & PS4) – In this mode, a player’s team is always looking for opportunities to challenge other users in an offline setting, which allows the user to earn bonus rewards the next time they log in. When online, the player has the opportunity to challenge other user-created teams in an offline game where the CPU controls their team. Players can only benefit positively in this mode even if their team does not perform up to their normal standards.

•Dynamic Difficulty (All platforms) – Baseball is a sport the dedicated love to master, but also one that can intimidate newcomers. In this year’s version of The Show, players who don’t feel like veterans yet can opt to start on a lower difficulty level and jump right in. An advanced logic system will then grade the user’s skill and adjust the challenge level up or down based on their overall performance. Batting and pitching are evaluated separately, so it’s possible for one to increase in difficulty while the other doesn’t, or even reduces. On-screen notifications will advise when the difficulty setting has been adjusted.

•Franchise Improvements (PS3 & PS4 Only) – Efforts continue to improve the accessibility of Franchise mode. A new notification system, which keeps the user more connected to their organization and the league, serves as an “Assistant GM” and will make sure critical information is more immediately provided and more readily accessible. Also refined is the logic that helps the multi-season cycle of Franchise mode and all of the stats and developments therein resemble real life as closely as possible. Other additions include a player search and the ability to hire and fire coaches during the regular season.

•True Broadcast Presentations (PS3 & PS4 Only) – The Show’s presentation crew has taken on a tall task for MLB 14: streamlining the game while enhancing the reality and increasing the variety of the experience. Pace of play is a focal point for the team as we strive to immerse the user in an even more engaging simulation. Heavy emphasis has also been placed on the stadium environment to feature the upgraded crowd actors, jumbotrons, LED boards, dugouts, specific stadium audio and a more engaged, responsive and unique crowd.

On the commentary side, the three-man booth of Matt Vasgersian, Eric Karros and Steve Lyons return for their second season together. This year's title will emphasize the three announcers in a more interactive, conversational style, yet will also continue to mine the world of baseball to find intelligent, timely and compelling commentary concerning today's teams and players. The overall goal is for the game to get deeper, and for the announcers to better adapt to changing game conditions -- including rising the enthusiasm level when the situation dictates.

MLB 14 The Show includes over 40 more enhancements, new features, and improvements!
• New dynamic gameplay cameras for batting and fielding
• New dynamic catch position indicator for fielding
• New baserunning paradigm (New animation core and logic)
• Completely re-done catcher animations suite (over 150 all-new catcher animations)
• More than 90 new batting stances
• More than 160 batting stance re-captures for players who changed their stances
• More than 50 new fielding animations
• More than 30 new pitching motions
• 20 new signature HR swings
• Intro Fly-Ins (PS4 Only)
• New bat boy and ball boy presentations (PS4 Only)
• All-new high-resolution crowd reactions, ambient noise, cheers, etc…. (PS4 Only)
• J*pan League-style and slap-hitter swing types (PS4 Only)
• Over 350 new fielding and batting animations (PS4 Only)
• Team specific, player specific, team generic crowd signs (PS4 Only)
• New RTTS Player Creation options, including the ability to model your skills, appearance, and signature animations after a real MLB player
• New and improved training modes, along with the addition of a new bronze/gold medal system.
• Easier trade requests (RTTS)
• Easier position changes (RTTS)
• Dynamic Potential for RTTS Player
• New injury presentations
• New Player Search feature
• Ability to hire/fire coaches in mid-season
• Notification system that keeps you connected to your team and league.
• New player contract logic that mimics real life
• New overall and potential formula
• Editable potential
• Refined player generation, with more position-specific attribute ranges (Online Franchise)
• New contract decision logic, which factors in contract renewable and arbitration status more heavily (Online Franchise)
• New lineup logic that takes into account secondary positions (Online Franchise)
• Refined trade logic (Online Franchise)
• Retired players stored for every season (Online Franchise)
• More player stats stored for every season (Online Franchise)
• New user management functionality at TheShowNation.com (Online Franchise)
• Make, accept, and vote on trades through TheShowNation.com (Online Franchise)
• Resolve and simulate games on TheShowNation.com (Online Franchise)
• League members can now manage games on TheShowNation.com (Online Franchise)
• New pitcher/batter status screen
• New pitcher/batter breakdown pop-up graphics
• Cycling help text
• Left-handed infielders
• CPU plate discipline logic has been re-written
• Pitcher can now bring up pitch history using L3 (same effect as R2 for the batter)
• New pickoff cameras
• New assortment of organ recordings
• Completely re-worked Plate Coverage Indicator (PCI)

Hello it's been several month's since but I'm BACK. For the past 4 weeks now i've pulled out my the show 13 and i've started editing my player's & team's in anticipation of the Show 14 which is still 2 and half month's away so to keep me busy i 'll get a chance to play the whole spring training schedule ( This will be my 3rd mlb the show game and i've alway's bought it a month later ( Here in Sweden the game isn't that popular ) and there's only 2 store's that sell it and it's over 2 hr's to & from the capital city by bus where i live. I thought last year was an improvement from the year before ( i even noticed a change that i suggested ) I play the season controlling ALL team's so i can update everything on a daily basis i like "keeping it real "One of the thing's i'm wondering about is will they're be any new stadium's for Spring training ?? Some of the stadium's are close replica's but for example last year they're were 2-3 new stadium's in the mlb. It look's like i'm gonna be trading my ps3 for a ps4 the graphic's look SICK ! I wonder what my other favorite game in the world for the past 14 yrs ( NBA 2k serie's ) is gonna look like on this console. Looking forward to having this product CAN'T WAIT but i have plenty of thing's to keep me busy in the mean time. Keep up the great work !! #Oldskool55 #GoBucs #Angelino

Still, rather than sign a pre-arb player to a, say, 4 year, $20MM extension with a club option where he makes $5MM a year and then a $5MM option, it would be better to have $500k, $3.5MM, $6.5MM, $9.5MM and a club option worth $12MM or something.

That's sweet that retractable roofs are on the list but what about the possibilities of moving or creating a new stadium? Any future plans for these items? Also with the Red Sox are you guys going to have them all with or without their beards? Since they all shaved and auctioned them off for charity and only wore the beards for the playoffs. And one last things I know you guys said rosters are cross platform but what about Offline Franchise Mode? If I start a season on PS3 will I be able to transfer it to PS4? Thanks

Man, making me want to buy a PS4 but I don't want my PS3 slim sitting in dust like my PS2 slim.

A question I posted the other day but apparently I posted it on the wrong thread, could the Developers consider interchangable beards/facial hair for real players? Like Dustin Pedroia. Chances are, he isn't going to play the '14 season with a build like he did in '13. He trimmed up his beard when he arrived to camp.

i think that these are all awesome features and i can't wait for the ps4 version to drop in may. normally i don't really comment on the features for next year versions, but i think it would be awesome if the rain got really intense when there was a weather forecast that called for it. i am not saying during the whole game because lets face it, umps would never let the game go on if the weather was intense early in the game. There have however, been times where it was the 8th inning and the rain was just coming down so hard and the umps let it play out just so they could finish and be done. Some kind of smart weather feature would be awesome for this game because as a ball player myself, i love playing in the rain. Then when you have your player lay out for a line drive in the outfield or something, he slides forward a lot more than he would on a day that there was no rain. Also having big puddles here and there in the outfield and infield when something like that occurs would really be awesome. Maybe even having rain delays or something.

Really excited about editable potential. I hated doing my Royals franchise and having Salvador Perez basically remain the same every year because his potential wasn't very high. He's going to be a stud and I wanted him to become one in future years in my franchise without me actually changing his skills.

As to the question about switch hitters with different stances there are a few guys who do have different stances. Mark Texiera has a much more closed stance from the right side. While most are the same or just have a slight difference they aren't all identical like Beltran.

Loved the classic stadiums in the past versions. Are they coming back this year on the PS4, and are their plans to introduce more? Ebbets, Comiskey, Baker Bowl, etc.?

Not 100% sure on this since I didn't see it from a Dev, but I read they're in PS3, but not to expect them in PS4 because of the total rebuild of that version. That doesn't mean they're NOT, but done be surprised if they were left out this year.

As for new classic stadiums, that is a no. Russell said that year that the process to secure the rights it too long and too costly.

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